Introduction: The British gold sovereign is one of the most ‘collected’ gold coins in Ireland today. We used it when we were part of the UK and it would seem that we are still hoarding them. Named after the English gold sovereign, previously last minted in 1604, the name was revived with the Great Re-coinage…
Introduction: GB & Ireland copper pennies (1825-60) are very sought after by collectors. They are often found in attic clearances and car boot sales in Ireland. The comparatively soft metal results in few coins surviving in higher grades. Many varieties exist and the main ones have been listed below. Victorian Copper Pennies: Victoria became Queen…
Introduction: The GB & Ireland “William IV” groats (or fourpence) were minted exclusively for use in British Guiana. The coin’s obverse design was simply copied from the Maundy Money groat of William IV but William Wyon produced a completely new design for the reverse. Prior to this introduction, British Sterling had problems being accepted as…
Introduction: The GB & Ireland “Edward VII” pennies are an easy series to collect as there is only one major variety (the 1902 low tide) and that too is not exactly scarce. As with all of the earlier GB & Ireland bronzes, the highest grades command a significant premium and the coins in the lower…
Background: Nobody thinks about British George V bronze pennies without thinking about the famous 1933 penny rarity. It is, perhaps, the most well-known British penny and many schoolboy collectors started the hobby by checking their pocket change for a 1933. Since these pennies circulated in Ireland right up until 1971, many Irish collectors also hoped…
Background: George VI’s reign included the economically disastrous Word War II which culminated in his overseeing the dismantling of the British Empire to the point where it had to be transformed into a weaker / less cohesive British Commonwealth. The biggest loss was the independence and breakup of India into three nation states – India,…
Background: Although British trade & commerce were deemed not to need any more pennies in 1953, over 1.3 million of them were minted to satisfy the public demand for a souvenir of their new Queen, i.e. if it were not for the new sovereign, no bronze pennies would have been minted in 1953. In fact,…
Background The bronze Coinage of Queen Victoria was introduced in the year 1860, to replace the copper coinage first inaugurated by Charles II in 1672. This new alloy for coinage had several advantages over the old copper coins:- it was lighter, cheaper and had greater hardness / durability But bronze is not as easy to…
Background: After the formation of the Irish Free State in 1922, UK currency remained the formal currency of the Irish Free State until 1928. After this date, UK coins continued to circulate alongside the Irish coins right up until Decimalisation (1971) and well into the 1970s. Irish Free State farthings were minted in London by…
Background: Edward VIII advised the Royal Mint that he wanted a modern coinage to reflect a modern Britain but, after his abdication, it was his younger brother (George VI) who inherited his new designs – the first of which was the farthing. A European Wren replaced Britannia on the reverse. This bird motif was similar…
The Old Currency Exchange is a specialist dealer and valuer of Irish & GB coins, tokens and banknotes 